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May 2014

I've always loved Bad Kitty! From her first mischevious adventures with Puppy, to her latest hijinks with creator and illustrator, Nick Bruel, Kitty has never disappointed. No dream of tuna is too tuna-y, no Puppy slobber is too slobbery, and no Uncle Murray Fun Fact is too fact-y, in fact, I just can't get enough.

Which made me ask myself, why? Why do I have this undying fascination with Kitty? Why do I care who wins the Kitty Cat Olympics? Why do I love playing What the Heck is That Thing? And, just how did that goofy cat get a refrigerator up a tree?

It wasn't until this week that I finally found the true reason...we both have May birthdays. YAY!!! Though she's a Taurus and I'm a Gemini, I have overcome that barrier and sworn to be her BIGGEST fan! Now it is my mission to make ALL of you her BIGGEST fans too!

Let the adventure begin with Happy Birthday Bad Kittyby Nick Bruel...

You'll be HOOKED!!!

To find out more about my favorite cat and her creator check out Bad Kitty Books, Uncle Murray will thank you.

Now, I'm off to play What the Heck is that Thing? Look out refrigerator!!!

Is your reader reluctant to read chapter books or fiction books of any kind? Try some non-fiction instead to get them interested in reading. Many kids prefer reading fact-filled books on their favorite topics rather than a story.

Have a conversation with your reader about what interests them. Then, come to the library to find some books that will support those interests and encourage them to read. Here are a few non-fiction series that might be appealing to your reader:

Once your reader's nonfiction interests become clear, ask a librarian to help you find fiction books on the same topic. Sometimes this can be a good bridge into the world of fiction books for reluctant fiction readers!

4. Choose filler. This can be rice, bird seed, beans, dried peas, whatever you have around the house. 5. Alternate layers of filler with the objects leaving a little shakable room in the bottle. 6. Glue the lid in place and attach the photo. You may want to laminate the photo. 7. Give it to your little one for hours of fun.Another option would be what is referred to as a discovery bottle. Skip the picture of what is inside and let the kids discover what they will. You could fill the bottles with water and oil liberally laced with glitter or tint the water. You could alphabet beads and encourage your child to make words like scrabble in a bottle. The possibilities are endless!

Hi! I'm Barbara, and I have been asked to fill some VERY big shoes, here at JCPL, and continue the ongoing blog series entitled, Ready to Read Reminder.

Ready to Read Reminder, will focus on ECRR (Every Child Ready to Read), which has 5 practices designed to help you and your child build a life long love of reading: READ, TALK, SING, WRITE, and PLAY.

Each month I will highlight one of the 5 practices and share fun activities with you that you and your child can enjoy doing together. This month I will be exploring WRITING and the importance it plays in early literacy.

By letting your child explore their world by coloring, drawing, and writing you are encouraging them to develop print motivation, expand narrative skills, vocabulary, phonological awareness, and letter knowledge.

Print Motivation

We know that print motivation includes being excited about books and stories, wanting to read and be read to, and being interested in learning to read yourself. When children have a chance to do their own writing, whether it is a scribbled “list,” random letters on a label, or the initial of their first name, they have a chance to feel connected to print in an active, very different way than when they are listening to a story. It’s always powerful for children to have the opportunity to do things for themselves! Being an active participant in writing and telling stories helps keep children excited about reading stories, too.

Narrative Skills & Print Awareness

The very first writing that children do is connected to narrative skills: The first stage of writing development is when children draw pictures, then tell the stories that the pictures represent. When children do this, they have made the leap to understanding that marks on the page can carry meaning. When a child completes a drawing, caregivers can encourage the child's narrative skills by saying, “Tell me about this picture!” or “What's happening in this picture?” In addition, children's narrative skills can be expanded by providing them with opportunities to explore writing as a part of their dramatic play, such as creating menus while playing restaurant, or writing traffic tickets while playing police officers.

Vocabulary

We know that children whose caregivers talk with them more have larger vocabularies than children whose caregivers speak with them less often. Parents and caregivers can prompt discussions by modeling writing for their children, and then discussion what they are writing and why. Talking about grocery lists before and during shopping trips, or the content of family emails while sitting at the computer, or to-do lists when putting a sticky note on the refrigerator, all provide more opportunities for the child to hear new words in meaningful contexts.

Phonological Awareness

As preschool children begin to learn their letters and are able to make intentional marks on the page, writing “messages” as part of their play is one way they practice their knowledge of what sounds go with what letters. “Invented spelling” is what happens when children try to spell a word that they don’t yet know how to spell. The resulting “misspelled” words don’t mean that children aren’t learning well, instead it means children ARE learning—they are thinking very carefully about the sounds that they hear and the letters that they know.

Letter Knowledge

Even before children have the fine motor skills that allow them to draw or write letters on purpose, their growing understanding of the shapes of letters allows them to recognize these letters when they see them—on buildings, in books, and even in their own scribbles. As children practice making the lines and curves and circles they will later use to write letters, they sometimes will make marks or a scribble, look at it, and then identify letters that they see. “Look, I made a T!”

Every day is special with your little one but, who knew celebrating YOU, and the wonderful job you do every day, could also become an early literacy skill builder? Make Mother's Day cards for all the special "moms" in their lives and help your child create memories that you both will cherish for a lifetime.

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...the Jedi Council decreed, that May the 4th, would forever be known as, Star Wars Day. For one day, Wookies will embrace Hutts, Sith will lay down their light sabers and embrace their Jedi brethren, and Yoda and the Emperor will meet for tea, at the local cantina, and all will be right with the universe.

What is a young Padawan to do to honor such a glorious day? READ!!!

What, you may ask yourself, is a young Padawan to read...let Yoda and the gang share some of their favorites with you.

YODA - "Read you must!"

The Strange Case of Origami Yoda, Tom Angleberger

DARTH VADER - "The Force is strong with this one."

Darth Paper Strikes Back, Tom Angleberger

CHEWBACCA - "Gggggggaaaaaaaahhhhhhhrrrrrrr"

The Secret of the Fortune Wooki, Tom Angleberger

JABBA THE HUTT - "Boonowa tweepi ha, ha"

The Surprise Attack of Jabba the Puppet, Tom Angleberger

PRINCESS LEIA - "I'd just as soon kiss a wookie."

Princess Labelmaker to the Rescue, Tom Angleberger

R2-D2 - "Beep, Bloop, Blop, Bleep, Boop."

Art2-D2's Guide to Folding and Doodling, Tom Angleberger

LUKE SKYWALKER - "The Force runs strong in my family."

Darth Vader and Son, Jeffrey Brown

HANS SOLO - "Laugh it up, fuzzball."

Vader's Little Princess, Jeffrey Brown

"Much to learn you still have, my old Padawan. This is just the beginning!" - YODA